Eight simple spring decorating tips

Spring is here, but is your home still in winter? Use these tips from interior decorator Kathy Passarette of Creative Home Expressions to freshen up your home for spring.

1. To freshen up your living areas for spring, and while doing a good spring-cleaning, move some of your collectibles around to give you a fresh perspective and appreciation of your belongings.

2. Keeping your décor simple adds to the relaxed feeling of the season and readies you for the summer months. Use colors a few shades lighter than the existing colors in your rooms. This way you are not disrupting your color scheme, just giving it a lighter, more airy look.

3. Remove thick, and dark-colored, area rugs. If you must have an area rug, use a natural fiber rug in its place; sisal, sea grass and jute are just a few of the many options available.

4. Take down heavy drapes, and replace with sheers or unlined curtains. They come in all colors and textures, so there is always something to match your décor.

5. Clean out your fireplace, but don't leave it bare. Fill it with a display of varying heights of candles, a floral arrangement, or white birch logs stacked neatly. Or you can display a decorative fire screen, one you've made or purchased to fill the space.

6. Lighten up your mantle by leaving it decorated simply; a vase or pot of spring flowers or flowering stems (like forsythia) will add some color and fragrance to the room. A simple painting or mirror with votive candles is all you need.

7. Trade out dark-colored throw pillows for light-colored florals or stripes. If you want to sew your own pillows, today's outdoor fabrics are being used indoors now for ease of cleaning and durability. Slipcovers in denim or cotton duck fabrics look clean and crisp; they also wash up easily.

8. Finally, a fresh coat of paint, whether on your walls or to update some tired furniture is the least expensive thing you can do for the most impact.

SOURCE: www.creativehomeexpressions.com

Spring to-do list

This spring, a homeowner's to-do list should include keeping children safe, helping to make the environment cleaner, and improving the overall value of their home.

Keep kids inside, away from the work area

NEVER give a child a ride on a lawnmower, even with the blades turned off. After being given a ride, the child may return for another ride when you aren't expecting him. You may not hear or see the child coming out for a ride and cause an accident that may change your life and your child's forever. Riding mowers are tools, not toys.

* Keep kids indoors under adult supervision

* Look down and behind when backing up

* Don't disengage safety mechanisms

* Stop mowing and turn off the engine if people are near

* Store and lock riding mowers, keeping keys away from children

* Don't allow a child to play on or around a riding mower

Keep the air cleaner, the grass greener

Manufacturers of outdoor power equipment have invested millions of dollars in innovative technologies to manufacture products that are cleaner, quieter, and more efficient. Today's outdoor power equipment is designed with low-emission engines that are 70 percent cleaner than those built in 1990 and meet and even exceed emissions standards from the Environmental Protection Agency. You can help further reduce emission output by:

* Being extra careful when filling the engine with gasoline; spilled gasoline releases unnecessary emissions into the air

* Leaving room for expansion by filling only 3/4 full to prevent unwanted emissions from being released

* Tightening gas caps to prevent evaporation and reduce emissions

* Storing properly in a cool place out of direct sunlight

* Tuning up engines and sharpening blades for more efficient performance

Using outdoor power equipment is a wise investment

Finally, as you mow, edge, plant and trim this year, know this:

* Landscaping can add as much as 11 percent to the value of your home

* Landscaping creates an environment attractive to birds and beneficial insects

* The right plant and location can lower heating and cooling costs by up to 20 percent

* Plants absorb pollutants and block noise levels

SOURCE: The Outdoor Power Equipment Institute, www.opei.org